A Brief Introduction to Political Action

People around the world are concerned about the current political directions of their cities, states, countries, and the international community. From issues surrounding the economy to the environment to, in this case, the proliferation of war criminals within American society, it is apparent that we must look for a variety of political interventions to achieve our goals.

The War Crimes Project advocates a multipronged approach to political action that mixes ideological (educational), advocacy, and direct action to achieve the political end of prosecuting the United States' worst war criminals. By advocating actions that exploit a diversity of different tactics, the War Crimes Project hopes to we utilize the established channels of power while simultaneously building new forms of popular political power as well as introducing new conceptual notions of criminality to achieve our ends. To briefly describe the different types of actions advocated for by the War Crimes Project:

Ideological (Educational) Action - Ideological action attempts to change people's ideas on a particular subject matter. In this case, the War Crimes Project hopes to change popular notions of criminality, currently centered around the narcotics and property crimes of people of color and poor people, by raising awareness of the far deadlier war crimes and crimes against humanity routinely carried out by the political elite. The War Crimes Project believes that by shifting the focus of concepts of criminality away from narcotics and property crimes towards war crimes and crimes against humanity, political and social pressure will naturally accrue, eventually contributing to the end of these crimes and the prosecution of criminals who have committed them. Educational actions include door-to-door canvassing, hanging posters, informational tabling, and community seminars.

Advocacy Action - Advocacy action attempts to utilize established channels of power to win the prosecutions of war criminals and, hopefully, bring about the end of US violations of international humanitarian law. As detailed on other parts of this website, the actions of various members of the US political elite violated established international laws to which the US is a party and which have been codified in domestic law. In theory, then, established channels of power ought to fulfill the responsibilities of the power granted to them and undertake legal action in accordance with their obligations, be this by seeking warrants and arresting criminals, prosecuting criminals through the court system, presiding over such criminal prosecutions, or enforcing criminal sentences handed down by courts. Advocacy actions typically take the form of lobbying efforts.

Direct Action - Direct action is any action carried out directly by a person to fulfill their aims without going through a third-party intermediary. Given the lack of action thus far by established channels of authority, the War Crimes Project supports direct action as a way of attaining some sort of reparations for injustice outside of the court system. Direct action spans an array of different actions, from meeting disruption to picketing to pie throwing.

These three types of action are not mutually exclusive. An action may reasonably be classified in more than one, and sometimes all, of the categories listed above. For example, a citizen's arrest may be an educational action if it is done in public because other people will be exposed to the issue, an advocacy action if it involves calling the police after the perpetrator is secured because it encourages established channels of power to carry out their duties, and a direct action because it involves taking personal responsibility for the carriage of justice without the intervention of a third party.

Through a combination of actions adopting different forms, the War Crimes Project believes we can accomplish our ends. However, we can never see justice without the participation of a large segment of society - that is to say, we can't do this alone. We need the participation of thousands of people across the country engaging in whatever forms of action they believe to be most effective. So while we can and do recommend different types of actions that can be undertaken and provide various resources for carrying out these actions, what you want to do is ultimately up to you. We hope that you choose wisely, however you may assist this collective effort.

Disclaimer

The legal statuses of different types of actions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The War Crimes Project cannot guarantee that an action promoted on this website is legal in your jurisdiction. It is also prudent to check the legal status of an action, preferably with a lawyer though minimally by personally consulting relevant criminal statues, prior to engaging in it to make sure you are comfortable shouldering any legal responsibility that may be assigned to you as a result of your action. The War Crimes Project neither supports nor condemns illegal actions. We merely ask that you follow your conscience and accept responsibility for your actions.